How do sharks sleep? There is a common misconception that sharks as a species never sleep because they must stay in motion to survive.
Sharks actually have periods of rest throughout the day, but this is very different from the type of sleep that other animals experience.
It is true that many types of sharks must remain in motion to receive vital oxygen from the water passing through their gills. These types of sharks are known as obligate vent sharks because they draw water in through their mouths and force it out through their gills.
Many sharks use a method called mouth pumping, where water is sucked in through the mouth and pushed out through the gills with the help of cheek muscles. Other types of sharks can remain stationary because they have special structures called spiracles that force water through their gills. Some sharks use both spiracles and mouth pumping. If these species were to stop moving, for example if they were caught in a net, they would eventually suffer from asphyxiation, according to Britannica.
How do sharks sleep?
So how do sharks sleep? Regardless of the method they use to breathe, sharks can experience periods of deep rest while stationary, but they do not sleep in the traditional sense. Their eyes always remain open, and their pupils continue to monitor the movement of the surrounding creatures. Sharks that may rest while stationary include the great white tip, the Carcharhinus pereziithe nanny shark, wobbegong sharks and the lemon shark.
The great white shark has long been a topic of interest to marine biologists because very little was known about its life processes. A big question is, of course, “Do great white sharks sleep?” In 2016, researchers studying great white sharks near Guadalupe Island, off the coast of Mexico’s Baja California peninsula, learned the answer when they encountered a female that appeared to be in a state of sleep.
Following her with a robotic submarine, they observed her wading in shallow water against a strong current for several minutes, her mouth open so that water would pass through her gills, in what appeared to be an almost catatonic state.
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Source: www.descopera.ro
